Sir Mark Rowley set the deadline at the International Mobile Phone Crime Conference in central London, stating he does not understand why telecoms giants have not done more to address the issue. He warned that if the industry fails to act, the Met will call on the Home Secretary to change laws to force phone companies to take action and encourage international law enforcement to do the same. Rowley emphasized that phone companies are leaving customers at risk until they take action to make stolen devices 'unusable bricks'.
The scale of the problem is severe, with the Metropolitan Police having some of the highest rates per thousand people of personal robbery and theft from the person in England and Wales, among which phones are a 'significant' problem. 3 percent of reported cases leading to a charge. The force is demanding specific anti-theft measures, including making resetting phones more difficult with requirements for multi-factor authentication and time delays, moves to stop parts being sold without device matching serial numbers, and the ability to block devices globally in real time.
Additionally, the Met wants anti-theft protection switched on by default, stolen phones to be rendered unusable, and better access to IMEI data to make it easier to return devices to their owners. In response, Apple and Samsung said they take device theft seriously and are both rolling out features to help thwart the black market for mobiles. For nearly three years, the Met has sought meaningful engagement with phone manufacturers, and their response to date does not match the scale of harm and risk to their customers, according to Rowley.
There is 'no reason' why in a year's time there should not be fully accessible serial numbers for officials and 'kill switches' for stolen phones.
The international dimension of the stolen phone trade adds complexity, with the trade worth millions of dollars, as a device stolen in London is worth more in countries like China because it has none of the government restrictions put in place by authorities there. Exploitation of children is a key concern: the Met had seen adverts on Snapchat offering children as much as £380 to steal a single iPhone, with a bonus of £100 for stealing 10. Rowley described this as an 'entry point into organised crime', noting that children recruited to snatch phones for quick cash are being groomed into criminal networks, normalised into offending behaviour and pushed further into exploitation.
Political reactions have been swift, with London Mayor Sir Sadiq Khan stating there is 'no reason' why in a year's time there should not be fully accessible serial numbers for officials and 'kill switches' for stolen phones. The Liberal Democrats have criticised the low charge rate, calling for a dedicated National Crime Agency unit to tackle organised gangs and for phone providers to immediately disable stolen devices. The issue gained prominence after Sir Keir Starmer’s chief of staff, Morgan McSweeney, had his government phone stolen last year, which contained messages relevant to an investigation involving Lord Peter Mandelson.
' The status of the investigation into this theft, including whether any suspects have been identified or charged, is not publicly known, and it remains uncertain how many phone thefts have been reported to the Metropolitan Police in the current year or what the trend is compared to previous years. Furthermore, the current legal framework regarding phone manufacturers' responsibilities for stolen devices and the specific legislative changes the Met is proposing are not detailed, and the effectiveness of existing 'kill switch' and IMEI tracking features in preventing theft or aiding recovery is also unclear.